Look Better in Black
by EasyIsTheDescent
Summary: Ever since she stumbled into his arms four years ago, Nikki Bellefleur has been the person who's ever gotten closest to Jace. When they meet a special mundane in Pandemonium and are thrown into a chaotic area of the Shadowhunter world, all the while juggling their feelings for each other, will the two survive? JacexOC SimonxClary Rest Canon. T because I'm a teen. Enough said.
1. Chapter 1

**Hello, readers!**

**I, along with almost every other TMI fan that has a pulse, have a major obsession with Jace. And while I love him and Clary and ship Clace like nobody's business, I had this idea pop into my head, and it stuck.**

**Which is how we are where we are now.**

**This first chapter is around four years before City of Bones, but the rest of the story will take place throughout all of the books, from the very beginning.**

**I hope you enjoy!**

**- EasyIsTheDescent**

**Disclaimer: The Mortal Instruments and its characters all belong to the incredibly gifted Cassandra Clare.**

**I merely own Nikki, a gallon of ice cream, and a big ass poster of Jamie Campbell Bower.**

**Not as cool as the series, but it's pretty nice.**

**Especially the shirtless poster.**

**I'll get on with the story.**

* * *

**Chapter 1**

**January, 2003, New York**

_Not much farther, Bellefleur, I_ thought to myself wearily, _not much farther at all._

I felt like I was dying.

I had a long gash across my forehead, my ankle was twisted at an agonizingly impossible angle, I had a gaping cut in my thigh, it was two degrees outside, and I was dying.

And of course, due to the glamour on my arm, nobody noticed.

I was too numb to feel the grief.

Too numb to cry.

Too numb to breathe.

Too numb to acknowledge that I had just witnessed my father's murder.

Just when I thought I was about to fall to the ground and not get back up, I spotted a gleaming building before me, and I knew exactly what it was.

The Institute.

I latched onto the edge of the fence, as the strength rune on my shoulder had been slashed, rendering it useless. Dragging myself to the gate, I slipped inside, stumbling over to the front door.

I pressed my palm, sticky with both my own and my father's blood, to the wood engraved with runes, and it swung open, a blast of warm air welcoming me.

"Maryse-" A boy jogged towards me, and he stopped, his eyes wide in shock.

The boy was by far the most handsome person I had ever met, with golden hair falling in front of his eyes and piercing gold eyes that were watching me in concern.

"My name is Nicolette Bellefleur," I choked out, "I'm a Shadowhunter."

And the last thing I saw was the boy's arms wrapping around me.

* * *

"She's been out for a long time."

"Jace, the girl almost died, she deserves to sleep the night."

"You just hate that she's blonde and pretty, Isabelle," The familiar sounding boy, Jace, replied to the girl's voice, Isabelle.

"I don't hate it," Isabelle argued, "If she sticks around, I'll have my own little Barbie doll to dress up."

"That, is the most ret-"

"Can you two stop?" A new voice, bored and annoyed, spoke up.

"Sorry, Alec," Jace said, and it sounded as if he were smiling.

Ignoring their conversation, I attempted to open my eyes, but it was difficult. I groaned, and this seemed to catch their attention, because they stopped talking abruptly.

"She's waking up," Jace said, his voice close to my head.

My eyes fluttered open, and I assessed the three people before me. One was the boy who I had seen before, his forehead crinkled in worry. Another was a very beautiful girl around my age, with dark hair in a neat French braid and dark, curious eyes. The last person was a boy, who looked around our age as well, with shockingly black hair and piercing blue eyes, watching me intently.

"How you feeling?" The girl, probably Isabelle, asked.

"Terrible," I grumbled, "Hence the groan."

The golden one, Jace snorted. "Forgive Isabelle, she's suffered head injuries as well, if that helps to explain anything."

Isabelle slapped him across the arm, and he rolled his eyes.

"May I ask who you are?"

"The hot one is Jace," Jace pointed towards himself with a grin, "This crack head is Isabelle," Isabelle waved, "And that tight-ass over there," He nodded towards the blue-eyed boy, who was leaning against the wall, "Is Alec."

"Nice to meet you," I murmured, running a hand through my golden hair in a self-conscious motion, "I'm Nicolette."

"Pretty name," Isabelle commented.

"Eh, I like Nikki better," Jace murmured, almost to himself.

"So, Nicolette," Alec spoke up, "What do you remember?"

I tried thinking, an impossible task. I remembered a gate, I remembered seeing Jace…

And blood. Lots of blood.

"More than I wanted to," I choked out, closing my eyes and breathing deeply.

I was not going to cry, not in front of people I barely knew. I was a Shadowhunter. I was brave, calm, and independent. Prove it.

"Can you tell us what happened?" Jace asked quietly, as if sensing I had been dreading the question.

"My dad and I were hunting demons," I explained, "I don't even remember what kind they were. All I can remember is being thrown into the wall, and I… I watched my dad-"

"Stop," Jace interrupted firmly, "We don't need to know anymore."

His tone wasn't harsh like the sentence was, and his eyes flashed with, not sympathy, but…

Understanding.

"Well," Isabelle spoke up finally, "Maryse, our mother-"

"Alec and Isabelle's mother," Jace corrected.

"She spoke briefly with the Clave, they're out looking for your father now. We just didn't know…" She trailed off, and I looked away, taking great interest in the runes carved into the wall, which spoke of healing and restoration.

"Anyways, you can take a shower in my room," Isabelle continued, "And you should be around my size, so you can borrow my clothes."

"Thank you," I whispered, and we shared a brief smile before I attempted to stand, swinging my feet over the side.

Mistake.

The room twirled slightly, and an arm reached out, holding me in place.

"Might want to be careful," Jace suggested, "If you fall over, Isabelle won't wait for you."

I laughed slightly, something I would have thought impossible, but Jace's presence was surprisingly soothing. "I'll keep that in mind. Anymore advice?"

"Hold it together, Nikki," He whispered quickly under his breath, "It gets better at some point, if you want it to."

And I was whisked away by Isabelle before I could reply.

When we got to her room, a chaotic mess of makeup, clothing, and weapons, I felt slightly overwhelmed, but Isabelle didn't seem to notice anything out of the ordinary, so apparently this was the usual state.

"If you want to hop in the shower," She called over her shoulder from her closet, "I'll throw your old clothes away, and put some new ones out for you."

"Thank you, Isabelle," I said, "You've already done so much for me, and I only just met you."

"Oh, call me Iz, or Izzy, or anything really," She smiled earnestly, "And don't worry about it. It's been so long since we had visitors, especially girls. I kind of like the company."

"Well this may sound crazy," I admitted, "But I kind of like your company, too. Being an only child has its downfalls."

After being able to peel off my blood-stained clothes and scrubbing the events of my horrible day away, I finally emerged from the hot shower to find, as promised, that my old clothes were gone, and a new set of black sweatpants and a long sleeve black shirt was in its place.

I looked at myself in the mirror, and I was shocked at what I saw.

My usually tan skin was a ghastly pale, my golden hair had seemed to lose some of its color, and my eyes, usually blue, now looked gray and lifeless.

_I will not cry, _I ordered myself, _I will not. I will not, I will not, I will _not.

Once I was dressed in Isabelle's clothes, slightly longer than my usual clothes, I walked back into her room to find her passed out asleep across her bed, and I smiled.

I searched a little bit before I found what I was looking for: a blanket. I draped it over her tall figure, and she didn't wake up. I turned the lights off, and when I exited her room, not quite sure where I was going, I saw Alec walking down the hallway.

"Hey," I greeted quietly, and he smiled in a shy motion.

"Hodge is looking for you. He's in the library."

I had no clue what a Hodge was, but I just nodded, moving to walk around him, but he held out an arm to stop me.

"Hodge is our tutor and mentor. He may seem… out there, but he's a good guy when you get to know him," Alec explained, and I nodded thankfully, walking down the hallway in the direction he had mentioned.

The library was magnificent. It was huge, books piled high in every corner, everything neat and orderly, and of course the Angel Raziel was stamped everywhere like a logo.

"It's beautiful, isn't it?" A voice inquired, and I turned to see a man with gray-streaked hair in a neat suit, glasses perched on his nose.

"It is. You must be Hodge," I smiled politely, and he nodded.

"That would be me. And you, my dear, must be Ms. Nicolette Bellefleur, correct?" He asked, and I nodded.

"It's nice to meet you, Hodge."

"Likewise. So I hear you are with us under…" He paused, gauging my reaction, "Unfortunate circumstances?"

I laughed bitterly. "You could say that. It's quite unfortunate indeed, pestering the Clave with my father's death, especially when he's doing what they request of him."

"Ah, I see you harbor your father's temper," Hodge murmured, "And yet you seem to have your mother's heart."

I guess I shouldn't have been surprised he had known my parents at some point. "Is there something you needed, Hodge?" I asked, my patience wearing thin and my cold exterior crumbling faster by the second.

"I just wanted to inform you, dear," His face grew soft, "That your father's body has been found. There will be a funeral tomorrow."

I sucked in a breath, my grip on the table nearby tightening until my knuckles were white. "That's a relief, I guess."

"I suppose," Hodge murmured, and he looked as if he were thinking about something. "So, Nicolette, do you happen to have any family to stay with?"

I thought over this. "I have an aunt," I murmured, "But she lives in Idris. I'm not quite sure I want to leave the city." My _city, _I thought to myself.

Hodge, as if reading my thoughts, nodded. "Well, I have a feeling that Maryse Lightwood, Alec and Isabelle's mother, would be happy to take you under her wing, if you were interested."

"I am interested," I admitted quietly.

Hodge smiled. "Well in that case," He said, "I welcome you to the Institute."

After I left the library, I soon realized I had made a mistake by not asking for some simple directions. I was lost.

I was lost, I was tired, my father was gone, and I was alone.

Which was how I had found myself wandering to the very end of the Institute, where I found a greenhouse filled with flowers and herbs that would have taken my breath away, had I any to begin with.

I slipped down the side of the wall, placing my head between my knees, and I started to cry.

And cry. And cry some more.

"Nikki?" Someone asked quietly, and I looked up in shock, seeing Jace standing in front of me, an unreadable look on his face.

"Oh, Jace, sorry, I didn't see you there," I stammered, rubbing a thumb under my eyes to wipe away the tears.

"I lost my father too, you know. I saw it happen," He whispered, and we just stared at each other.

And for once, it seemed no words were necessary at all.

Because in that moment, the two of us were in perfect understanding of each other, and it was quite a relief.

Jace moved to sit next to me silently, and we just sat there, my head against his shoulder and his cheek against my hair, for a long time.


	2. Chapter 2

**Greetings!**

**To everyone who favorite-d and followed this story, I love you guys!**

**So the previous chapter was a prologue, of sorts, but now it will be set in the City of Bones.**

**It's kind of short, so I apologize, but it gives you a little taste of Nikki's relationship with the others.**

**Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own The Mortal Instruments or its characters, only my own.**

**Does it hurt?**

**A little bit.**

**Will I recover from the harsh truth?**

**...Probably not.**

* * *

**Chapter 2**

**August, 2007, New York**

"Jace, get the hell up!" I yelled, and I heard a muffled groan, followed by a thump that made the door shudder.

"Go away, Shadowhunter Barbie! Let me sleep!"

I huffed, exasperated, before I raised my voice to a yell. "_I'm not gonna write you a love song, 'cause you asked for it, 'cause you need one, you see-"_

"Shut up!"

"Let's go, Legally Blonde, the sun is shining, birds are chirping-"

"Nikki Bellefleur, I swear by the Angel-"

"Oh quit bitching and moaning already," I scolded, swinging the door open. Jace was a lump under the blankets, his golden hair the only identifiable part of him.

"It's a talent."

"Oh, I never doubted it."

"Aren't _you_ tired, huh?" He asked, glaring at me intensely with those gold eyes of his.

"Yeah, but I like to kick your ass when training. You have to prioritize these things, Jace."

"You, Nikki," Jace groaned, standing, "Are the most dangerous creature I have ever met."

"Why thank you," I smirked triumphantly, and he muttered something under his breath as I moved on to the next teenager.

"Isabelle!" I yelled, approaching my _parabatai's_ bedroom.

"Nikki, if that's you, I swear-"

"Isabelle Sophia Lightwood, if you don't wake up, I will hide your curling iron for good," I warned, and there was a silent pause from the other side of the door.

"Give me ten minutes."

I grinned, victorious. Okay, two down, one to go. I approached Alec's bedroom cautiously. He was the most difficult one, surprisingly.

"Alec," I called, "There is a cup of coffee, black, made just for you!"

"Don't even try it, Nikki," He mumbled from inside, "Not even you can wake me up during these ungodly hours of the morning."

I glanced at my watch incredulously. "It's only ten in the morning!"

"If you still say morning, it's too early."

"Oh by the Angel, someone's especially moody this morning." I commented, opening the door hesitantly.

Alec didn't budge.

I walked over to his bed, jumping up next to him and placing my chin on his arm. "Come on, Alec, the sun is shining-"

"Be thee gone, obnoxious creature."

"I love you too, brother."

"Why can't you and Jace train by yourselves," Alec groaned, still not even opening his eyes.

"Because Jace is a sucky fighter."

"I heard that, Bellefleur!" Jace yelled from outside, probably trudging to the kitchen for coffee.

"Only because he's afraid to hurt you," Alec mumbled, and I rolled my eyes.

"Yeah right."

"You are so blind when it comes to him," Alec muttered, so low I wasn't entirely sure I had heard him correctly.

"Oh well, just get up," I ordered, bounding out of the room and slamming the door shut.

Ten minutes later, Isabelle and Alec joined Jace and I in the kitchen (Hodge never joins us for breakfast), where I had quickly started making breakfast, avoiding Isabelle's offers to help.

"Want me to make pancakes?" Isabelle offered, and Jace's eyes widened, horrified.

"No, sweetie, I got it." I said hurriedly, and her eyes narrowed at me, but she didn't say anything.

"Oh, bless you, child," Jace sighed in relief, and Isabelle snatched a wooden spoon out of my hand, smacking him with it.

"Hey! Paws off the equipment," I snapped, and Iz rolled her eyes, handing it back to me.

"Sorry Nikki."

"I can't use this now," I wrinkled my nose in distaste, "It smells like too much cologne, I mean no offense, Jace sweetie."

Jace glared at me. "Well none taken then, Nikki sweetie."

"You two are hilarious," Alec grumbled, "Coffee, if you'd please?"

I sighed at his impatience, grabbing the mug I'd already poured for him and sliding it across the counter, where he caught it with ease.

"So, what's for breakfast?" Isabelle asked eagerly, stirring creamer into her coffee absentmindedly.

"We have eggs, we have bacon, and we have potatoes," I announced, moving my hand just in time to avoid popping bacon grease.

Alec peaked his head over my shoulder. "That doesn't look like eggs."

"That's because I added like tomatoes, onions, cheese, and stuff like that."

"Ooh, the French girl is getting all Mexican now," Jace commented, running a hand through his hair as he smirked at me.

"You know Jace, you sound so damned British in the mornings, and it just keeps getting worse as time goes on."

"You once told me you thought accents in guys were hot."

Damn. I had said that.

And I still believed it.

"I would reply and try to insult you," I said, not looking up, "But you may just be too much of an airhead to notice."

Isabelle choked on her coffee.

Jace was glaring at me. "Well played, Nikki. I have taught you well, after all."

I grinned. "I was this good _long_ before I met you, darling." I reminded him as I divided up the steaming eggs, placing an even amount on four plates, and then doing the same with the bacon and fried potatoes.

"Mm, looks good, Nicks." Alec complimented, grabbing a fork in anticipation.

"Much better than if Isabelle cooked," Jace added, and the Shadowhunter in question raised an eyebrow.

"And _you_ are such a good cook, Wayland?"

"Now, it's not that you're a bad cook, Izzy," Alec interrupted, and Jace and I looked to him as if he were mad, "It's just that Nikki is such an amazing cook. Just as good as Mom, and it makes her difficult to beat."

I smiled at Jace, who rolled his eyes.

"Wow, you managed to avoid my wrath _and_ make Nikki happy all at one time, didn't you Alec?" Isabelle asked sarcastically, and I ignored her, eating my breakfast.

After we finished breakfast, the four of us made our way to the training room, Isabelle moving towards a target with a dagger in hand, Alec close behind, leaving Jace and I alone.

He turned to grin at me. "Ready to do this, Nicks?"

I winked at him. "You bet, handsome."

He grabbed a seraph blade in anticipation, tossing one to me before he walked over to the middle of the room.

I moved to stand a few feet in front of him, and he lunged. He swung out at me, and I ducked, the blade whizzing over my head, and I brought my own blade up, a metallic ringing sound echoing through the air as they collided. I whirled around, swinging the blade towards him again, and he blocked it with ease, sliding his blade away from mine. I lunged at him again, but he was gone, and I felt his arm wrap around my neck.

I used his arm as leverage, flipping up over his shoulder and kicking his legs out from under him, grinning as he hit the mat with a thud.

"And I barely broke a sweat, bitch," I held out a hand to help him up, but he just pulled me to the ground, standing and brushing his hair out of his eyes.

"You are the only person I've ever lost to, Nicolette Bellefleur." The smirk playing at his lips made him seem like he was joking, but there was an unrecognizable intensity in his eyes, and I knew he barely used my real name at all.

"Did I wound your pride, Wayland?" I asked, and his eyes narrowed.

"It takes a lot more than a girl like you to wound me," He said bitterly, and he motioned for me to stand.

I obliged, and I noticed out of the corner of my eye Alec and Isabelle were no longer practicing, but were watching us intently.

"Let's go."

And Jace lunged again.

* * *

**How was it?**

**Let me know!**

**Until next time, guys!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Hello readers!**

**Thank you so much for all the favorites and follows, they make me so happy!**

**With that, here is the next chapter!**

**Disclaimer: All of The Mortal Instruments and its characters belongs to Cassandra Clare.**

**I just give them sarcastic counterparts, just to keep things interesting.**

* * *

"Come on, you don't even try!" I complained, and Jace ignored me, walking into the kitchen and grabbing a water bottle from the fridge, downing half of it immediately.

We had gone on for another six rounds of training, and I won three of them, Jace gently taking me out for the other three. I was sick of this. He didn't treat me like I was breakable when we were fighting demons, so why when we were training?

_You just hate how much you want him to care, _a voice rang in my head.

I ignored it.

"If I don't try, how did I manage to beat you?"

"Come on, Jace, don't act dumb," I snapped, "I'm a Shadowhunter. We train because we go out there and risk our lives every damned day, the least you could do is give me someone useful to train with."

He muttered something unintelligible under his breath, and I sighed.

"_What?_"

"I said I don't want to hurt you!" Jace hissed, and I jumped slightly, shocked at the burning emotion on his face.

Of course he didn't want me hurt.

He was my brother.

Nothing more.

"Hey guys!" Isabelle called, and my _parabatai_ bounded into the kitchen before I could reply.

"Yeah, Iz?" I didn't look up, my eyes still glued to Jace's face, but he wasn't looking at either one of us, still guzzling his water bottle.

"You guys better be prepared to go demon hunting tonight," Isabelle grinned, "We're going to Pandemonium."

Jace groaned. "Perfect."

"Who's the bait?" I asked, and I could have sworn Jace's eyes flickered to mine, but when I looked at him, he was watching Isabelle.

"Me, darling, save your breath," She assured me, and I shook my head.

"The idea of my parabatai being demon bait is even more unappealing than the thought of being the bait myself," I reminded her, and she squeezed my shoulder in reassurance.

"Look on the bright side. We are very good at our jobs. I seduce the demon scum, and you drive a seraph blade through it," She winked, and I grinned.

Hours later, after a lunch consisting of me trying to teach Isabelle to cook something as simple as a frozen pizza, and ten minutes later placing the frozen pizza in question in the garbage and ordering a fresh one, the chef herself barged into my room, wordlessly walking to my closet.

"Welcome, enter as you please."

"Enter I shall. Hey do you still have those thigh-high boots?"

"You mean the ones Alec called my 'stripper shoes'?"

"I suppose so."

"Here," I moved her out of the way, shuffling through my closet until I grabbed the desired shoes and handing them to her.

"Thank you. They go perfect with the dress I have in mind."

"It covers your runes?" I asked worriedly, and she nodded.

"You know, just because Mom tells you you're in charge, it doesn't mean you have to _be_ her," Isabelle reminded me, and I shrugged.

"I like taking care of you guys. It's my job. If that makes me like Maryse, then so be it," I said honestly, and she smiled at me, before she slipped out of the room, probably going to get dressed.

I walked into the bathroom, staring at my bangs determinedly. The most obnoxious thing was when they fall into my eyes during a demon hunt.

Not to mention dangerous.

I French braided my bangs back, pulling my hair into a tight ponytail, and I looked at my masterpiece victoriously. It looked halfway pretty, and my bangs weren't coming loose now.

I proceeded to touch up the slight amount of makeup already on my face, put in small earrings that didn't get in the way, and I dressed in my gear, which consisted of black leather pants, boots, jacket, and a black shirt.

I grabbed my stele, which had been one of the last things my father had ever given me, as it had my family crest engraved in it, and I slowly began to trace over a strength rune on my arm.

I slid my jacket off of my shoulder, attempting to reach the back of my shoulder blade to trace a glamour rune, but the burning sensation was not exactly comfortable, and I wasn't making any progress.

"Here, let me," Jace whispered in my ear, and I ignored the shiver that went down my spine as he pressed the stele to my skin.

_ He's your brother, snap out of it! _I scolded myself. _He does not have feelings for you! You are indeed going crazy!_

"Isabelle should probably do that. Her being my _parabatai_, and all."

"I can draw a rune just as good as anyone else," Jace argued, and I rolled my eyes, thanking him.

Alec walked out of his room, his eyes closed. "Don't tell me, but Isabelle is the person we're waiting on."

"How'd you guess?" Jace asked, amused, and I smacked his arm.

"Show some respect for your sister. I don't see your lazy ass going out there and seducing demons."

"It'd be too easy for me. I need to give you guys a chance at some point."

"Please," Alec snorted, "You just realized that not even Jace Wayland can make demons interested in the Tall-Dark-And-Masculine type."

I snickered, Jace shooting me a glare that miraculously sent me into a round of coughing.

"Who's dying?" Isabelle asked, and I shook my head.

"No one yet. Can't make any promises, though."

"Anyways," Alec interrupted impatiently, "Let's get this show on the road, shall we?"

We walked outside, starting off down the sidewalk (because of course, you can't take a cab when people can't see you) and I had to scold Jace every two minutes for bumping shoulders with innocent bystanders.

When we reached Pandemonium, the club already alive with music and people, we stood right outside the door, prepping each other quickly.

"Remember, just lead him to the closet, and we will meet you there," I promised, and Isabelle nodded, rolling her eyes at my overprotectiveness.

We slipped past the line of teenagers, through the doors and straight into the crowd of dancing bodies.

Isabelle disappeared, and Jace, Alec, and I stood towards the wall, edging through the people silently.

Someone reached out and grabbed my arm, and when I looked up it was an attractive man with dark hair and green eyes, who I instantly recognized as a werewolf.

"A Shadowhunter, hmm?" He grinned, raking his eyes over me, "And a pretty one, at that."

"Paws off," A familiar voice warned, and Jace pulled me away, not meeting my eyes as he continued through the swarm of people.

Alec was watching the two of us with an unreadable expression, and I just shook my head, grabbing his arm and pulling him in Jace's direction.

We leaned against the wall, looking for Isabelle quietly.

We found her at the opposite side of the club, winking in our direction, and I smiled slightly. Alec glanced down at the Sensor in his hand, and as it vibrated, we looked up in the direction it meant.

There was a guy there with electric blue hair, and he was locking eyes with a short redheaded girl who seemed so out of place it was almost comical.

I motioned my hand towards him, and Iz nodded, slowly walking near him. He looked up, as if sensing her presence, and she nodded her head towards the storage closet.

He smirked, the redhead forgotten, and I almost laughed at her rejected expression. Mundanes. They are completely oblivious to the dangers in their world, and better yet, oblivious to us, the people who risk their lives to destroy that danger.

The demon followed Isabelle, and the three of us waited before following them to the storage closet.

Isabelle said something to him, smiling, and they slipped through the door, disappearing from our view. Jace pulled a weapon from his belt, my hand on a seraph blade in anticipation, and we walked in after them.

Isabelle already had her whip wrapped around his ankles, and she grinned at us when we came in. "He's all yours."

Alec and Jace grabbed him and shoved him into a pillar, his wrists tied, and Jace began to step in front of him, but I put an arm out, stopping him.

"Now, now," I grinned, "Ladies first."

I stood in front of the demon, my eyes meeting his, though his human form was slightly taller than me. He glared at me with pure hatred.

"So, handsome," I asked conversationally, "Are there any others?"

"Any other what?" He asked innocently.

"Now, you don't strike me as dumb, handsome," I smirked, pulling the top of my shirt down just enough to reveal the angelic rune in the center of my chest. "You know my kind, just as well as I know yours."

"Shadowhunter," The demon spat in disgust, and Jace, hovering behind me, grinned widely.

"Got you."

I could have sworn I felt another presence in the room, but I tossed the thought away quickly.

"So," Jace began, "You never did answer the lady's question."

"I don't know what you're talking about." The demon spat through his teeth, and I snorted.

"He's talking about demons, handsome," I enlightened, "You know what those are, do you not?"

"Demons," Jace continued, smirking, "Religiously defined as hell's denizens, the servants of Satan, but understood here, for the purposes of the Clave, to be any malevolent spirit whose origin is outside our own home dimension-"

"Jace," I interrupted wearily.

"Nikki's right," Alec agreed. "Nobody here needs a lesson in semantics-or demonology."

"Nicks over there," Jace motioned to me, "Thinks I talk too much. Do you think I talk too much?"

"I could give you information," The demon offered, "I know where Valentine is."

Jace and Alec shared a look, and Alec shrugged. "Valentine's in the ground," Jace said, to who's direction I don't know. "The thing's just toying with us."

"Jace, can I kill it?" I asked, running a hand over my seraph blade lightly. "You know, for such a lady's man, you really aren't making my night worthwhile."

Jace grinned, motioning for me to go ahead, and I raised the blade, to which the demon gasped. "Valentine is back!" The demon yelled, struggling fiercely. "All the Infernal Worlds know it-I know it-I can tell you where he is-"

"By the Angel, every time we capture one of you bastards, you claim you know where Valentine is. Well, we know where he is too. He's in hell." Jace glared at the demon before him. "And you can join him there."

I was about to plunge the blade into the demon's chest, but something stopped me.

"Stop!" Someone's voice, female, cried. "You can't do this."

I whirled towards it, the seraph blade dropping to the ground.

The redhead from in the club was watching us with fearful eyes, and I just stared at her. I didn't know exactly what to do.

"What is this?" Alec asked, the first one to recover.

Jace was the next to recover. "It's a girl," He said coolly, "Surely you've seen girls before, Alec. Your sister Isabelle is one. Nikki is one." He raked the girl up and down, and I felt my heart sink. She wasn't pretty, she wasn't pretty…

"A mundie girl," Jace murmured, "And she can see us."

"Of course I can see you," The redhead fired back. "I'm not blind, you know."

I snorted. "You have no idea, mundane."

The girl looked at me, and I just raised an eyebrow. "Why are you calling me that?" She demanded, and I shrugged.

"Felt like it. And if you felt like seeing daylight again," I grabbed my blade from the floor, "You would probably leave. Now."

"I'm not going anywhere," The girl pointed to the demon to prove her point. "If I do, you'll kill him."

"Most likely, yes," I admitted, "And you would care…"

"Be-because-," The girl stammered, "You can't just go around killing people."

"You're right. You can't go around killing people." Jace pointed to the blue-haired boy, "That's not a person, little girl. It may look like a person and talk like a person and maybe even bleed like a person. But it's a monster."

"Jace," Isabelle hissed, "That's enough."

"You're crazy," The girl was slowly edging towards the door, "I've called the police, you know. They'll be here any second."

"She's lying," Alec pointed out, "Jace, do you-"

But Alec was cut off, because the demon cried out, and I was knocked to the ground, rolling, feeling a sharp pain as it dug its claws into my side.

And it was gone. Jace shoved a seraph blade through it, the tip grazing my shirt from below the demon, and he tossed the thing to the side with a burning look.

Jace pulled me up carefully, his eyes concerned.

I glanced over his shoulder to see Isabelle glaring at the girl with a passion, her whip wrapped around the girl's wrist tightly. "Stupid mundie girl," She spat, "You could have gotten Nikki killed."

"Isabelle," I called, "Enough."

With Jace's arm still supporting some of my weight, a healing rune he had drawn on my arm already going into effect, we made our way over to the girl, who was looking at the wound in my side with worry.

"What do we do with her Jace?" I asked quietly, hoping not to concern her.

He thought over this, eyeing the girl carefully. "We let her go."

"Maybe we should bring her back with us," Alec suggested. "I bet Hodge would like to talk to her."

"No," Isabelle and I chorused, though for different reasons. Isabelle, I knew, didn't want mundies, and I just didn't want her to be scared.

"Clary?" A new voice interrupted, and we all looked up to see a scrawny boy with brown hair and glasses, bodyguards behind him. "Why are you in here by yourself? What happened to the guys-you know, the ones with the knives?"

I rolled my eyes at him, and Jace shook with silent laughter.

"I thought they went in here," The girl, Clary, explained. "But I guess they didn't. I'm sorry."

Isabelle and I giggled simultaneously.

After they were gone, I turned to Jace, wearily. "How come I have the feeling we haven't seen the last of her?"

"Because," He sighed, "I don't think she's a mundane, after all."

* * *

Was it good?

Let me know!

- EasyIsTheDescent


	4. Chapter 4

**Good day, readers!**

**Once again, a big thank you for the favorites and follows! **

**So, without further interruptions from my long-winded typing, here is chapter 4!**

**Disclaimer: Cassandra Clare is the owner of TMI and all its characters.**

**I just own the sarcastic blonde girl that argues with the sarcastic blonde boy.**

* * *

"Jace, let's go. Hodge said we have to find her."

"No, he didn't," Jace argued, "He said we _could._"

"You know just as well as I do if she isn't a mundane, then she may be in danger. It's our job." I reminded him, and he sighed.

I was sitting at the edge of his bed (in the evening, I may add), shaking his shoulder repeatedly, but he refused to move.

"Look on the bright side, she's pretty," I pointed out, though it stung to say the words out loud. Of course she was pretty.

And that was Jace's type: pretty.

He muttered something along the lines of "I've seen prettier," And I leaned an ear towards him.

"What?"

"I said she's too short," He lied, and I raised an eyebrow, but he didn't notice, as his eyes were closed.

"Come on, Jace-"

"Nikki, Alec and Iz don't even want her here. You don't even want her here. So why are you trying to be Maryse?" He asked, and my eyes narrowed.

"Because she's the only mother I've ever had, dumbass. And if I have a chance to do something she would approve of, I'm going to take it." I snapped, and Jace finally poked his head out from under the covers, his eyes serious.

"I didn't mean-"

"Jace," I interrupted, "You and I both know this girl isn't a mundane. And if she's a Shadowhunter, which would be odd, we still would be obligated to help her."

"And if she's a Downworlder?"

I sighed. "We would still need to help her. Though it is almost impossible she is a Downworlder, just saying."

"Fine," Jace groaned, "Would you like to stay and watch me get dressed, too, Ms. Bellefleur?"

I was out the door in record timing, and I could hear Jace's laughter as I ran down the hallway towards my room.

Once I emerged from my bathroom, fully dressed in black jeans, a black shirt, my boots, and my leather jacket, Jace was leaning against my bedroom door, watching me with little interest.

I raised an eyebrow. "What?"

"I don't know how you're Isabelle's _parabatai_," He commented, "You wear far too little makeup."

I glanced back at the mascara brush on the counter. "Well I'm sorry if my boring façade isn't enough to satisfy you."

"You are many things, Nikki, but boring isn't one of them." He said it with an amused smirk, but there was a ringing truth in his words that made me feel oddly touched.

"Let's get moving," I said, and he nodded, holding the door open for me to walk through before he shut it behind us.

"Isabelle and Alec aren't coming, just to let you know," He stated, and I sighed, shaking my head as we walked out of the Institute.

"I wasn't expecting them to come to begin with."

"I can't exactly blame them," Jace said, matching my stride, "I didn't want to come, either."

I ignored him. "Did you put on a glamour?"

He grinned at me. "If people could see me, I guarantee they would be looking."

I laughed. "Fair point. Besides, Jace, I thought you would have been pleased, coming to find the girl."

Jace raised an eyebrow. "Why would you think that?"

"It just sounds like something you'd be interested in. Tracking down the pretty girl, making her fall for you." I nudged his arm playfully, and a smile was tugging at his lips, but he shook his head.

"Nah, not really my type. Short and redheaded."

"So what _is_ your type, Mr. Wayland?"

He glanced over at me, grinning. "Tall, blonde, tan, and beautiful."

"If you are describing yourself, I will kill you."

He placed a hand over his heart, feigning hurt. "I've been wounded. I am trying to be a charming gentleman complimenting a beautiful lady, and you interpret my ways as self-benefiting."

"Because they _are_ self-benefiting."

"Possibly. But you are beautiful, whether you choose to admit it." He said this casually, and I prayed he didn't notice the grin that was threatening to spread across my face.

"You said Java Jones, right?" Jace asked suddenly, and I glanced up at the coffee shop before us.

"Yes sir."

We slipped through the door, and after a quick glimpse around the small little room, I spotted a head of fiery red hair that I recognized.

Jace motioned towards a sofa against the wall, and I sat on the end, my feet propped up over Jace's shoulder when he sat down.

He glanced at the heel of my boots fearfully. "I don't think I want that near my face."

I looked at my shoe innocently. "You'll be fine, it's only six inches."

Jace smirked. "You don't want to know the 'six inch' jokes going through my head right now, I promise you."

I shuddered at the thought. "No, I really, really don't."

The redheaded girl, Clary, was talking to her friend while the odd teenager at the front continued gagging out deformed poetry, and Jace and I shared a look that resembled fear.

"What the f-"

"Did we get ourselves into?" I finished, cutting off his most likely cruel language.

Not that I didn't use it myself, but still.

Be nice near mundanes.

"Mundanes are the most disturbing creatures I have ever witnessed," Jace proclaimed, and I rolled my eyes.

"Us Shadowhunters are pretty disturbing ourselves."

"You make a strong case, Bellefleur."

"Well that's the goal."

"What are they saying?" Jace asked finally, and we leaned forward to listen in to the mundane's conversation.

"Never mind that for a second," The guy, Simon, I thought I'd heard, said. "There's something I wanted to talk to you about."

"Furious Mole is not a good name for a band," Clary said quickly, and Jace had a look on his face that made me choke back laughter.

"Not that," The boy shook his head. "It's about what we were talking about before. About me not having a girlfriend."

"Surprise, surprise," I muttered, and when Jace looked over at me I clapped a hand over my mouth. "I didn't say that!"

"Oh, you did," Jace grinned, "You are just like me, aren't you?"

"By the Angel I hope not."

"I don't want to ask her out because it wouldn't really be fair to her if I did…" Simon was saying, and I turned to Jace.

"She does know he's madly in love with her, right?"

"I don't believe so. Hey, maybe that's why we're supposed to help her."

I rolled my eyes. "By playing matchmaker for her and her best friend? Because I'm already trying to find Isabelle a steady boyfriend."

"You of all people should know 'Isabelle' and 'commitment' will never go in the same sentence."

I sighed. "She's got her reasons," I muttered under my breath, and he looked at me curiously, but I ignored him.

"So, who is it, then?" Clary asked finally, and Jace coughed to hide a laugh, while I just covered my mouth, giggling slightly.

The girl looked over her shoulder, and her eyes widened in surprise when she saw us. Her gaze took in our dark attire and the few weapons we had on us with curiosity, and I winked at her as Jace waved, before the two of us walked out of the shop.

Jace stopped by the brick wall, leaning against it, and I joined him, standing at his side.

"We have such swagger," I approved, and he smirked.

"We're Shadowhunters, darling. It's what we do."

"Most Shadowhunters I know don't walk with cool swagger as much as they walk with stiff… constipation."

Jace snorted. "Good point. You have your ex Ryan in mind?"

"Pretty much."

At that moment Clary burst through the door, and she looked surprised to see us out there.

Okay, Bellefleur, try for conversation. "Your friend's poetry is quite horrifying, you know." I commented, and she blinked in surprise.

"What?"

"It sounds like he ate a dictionary and started vomiting up words at random." Jace offered, and I rolled my eyes at him.

"I don't care about Eric's poetry." Clary was furious. "I want to know why you're following me."

I smiled innocently. "We were following you?"

"Yes. And you were eavesdropping, too. Do you want to tell me what this is about, or should I just call the police?"

"And tell them what? That invisible people are bothering you?" Jace sighed, shaking his head. "Trust me, little girl, the police aren't going to arrest someone they can't see."

"I told you before, my name is not little girl," Clary argued. "It's Clary."

"It's a pretty name," I commented. "Like clary sage."

"In the old days people thought eating the seeds would let you see the Fair Folk. Did you know that?" Jace asked, and I gave him a warning look.

"I have no idea what you're talking about." Clary sighed.

"You don't know much, do you?" Jace asked, amused. "You seem to be a mundane like any other mundane, yet you can see us. It's a conundrum."

"What's a mundane?"

"Someone from the human world," I answered quietly, examining my nails. I may not be much like Jace, but I still put on the same façade that he did.

"But you're human," Clary protested.

"We are. But we aren't like you." Jace said, bored.

"You think you're better. That's why you were laughing at us."

Ooh, ouch. And the problem was, she may be right. "We were laughing," I glanced at Jace, "Because declarations of love amuse him, especially when unrequited."

I made the comment sound casual, though there was something in the words I said that made my chest sting.

And Jace seemed to notice.

"And because your Simon is one of the most mundane mundanes I think we've ever encountered. And because Hodge thought you might be dangerous, but if you are, you certainly don't know it." Jace's gaze flickered to mine.

"I'm dangerous?" Clary repeated, disbelieving. "I saw you kill someone last night. I saw you drive a knife into him, and—"

"And what? You saw him try to kill me too, right?" I asked, and Jace's hand, which was holding a Sensor for reasons I didn't know, tightened slightly, as if he were aching to have a weapon fill its place.

"We may be killers," Jace continued, "But we know what we are. Can you say the same?"

"I'm an ordinary human. And it doesn't matter what he did, you killed him. You're cold-blooded killers." Clary's gaze flickered to mine, and I scoffed.

"As opposed to peace-loving killers? Because I am none of the above, darling. I am merely an adrenaline-seeking killer, completely different."

"I wouldn't be so quick to brand myself as ordinary, if I were you. Let me see your right hand." Jace leaned towards Clary, who looked confused.

"My right hand?" Jace nodded. "If I let you see my hand, will you leave me alone?"

"Probably not." I interrupted, and Clary looked over at me as she handed Jace her hand, her eyes filled with curiosity as she looked over my skin that was covered in runes, and…

Was that envy?

Jace turned her hand over, his brow furrowing. There was no rune.

"Are you left-handed?" I asked, and she shook her head.

"Most Shadowhunter children get Marked on their right hands—or left, if they're left-handed like Nikki and I—when they're still young. It's a permanent rune that lends an extra skill with weapons."

Jace put his left hand out for her to see, but from her blank expression, she didn't see it. "I don't see anything," Clary huffed.

"Jace-"

"Let your mind relax," he suggested. "Wait for it to come to you. Like waiting for something to rise to the surface of water."

I narrowed my eyes at him. I wasn't sure she was a Shadowhunter. I knew she wasn't a mundane, but the more that happened, the more I doubted she was like us.

Or at least, I hoped. A mundane was not useful Shadowhunter material.

"You're crazy," Clary commented, but her eyes focused, and suddenly she blinked in surprise. "A tattoo?"

I grinned. "Nice ink, huh?"

"Don't listen to her," Jace's voice was filled with a touching affection, "They're Marks, called runes. We burn them into our skin, and they do different things."

"It's nearly full dark, Jace." I interrupted suddenly. "We should go."

"You mean the two of you, right?"

"No, not really. Hodge told us to bring you with us."

"Why would he want that?"

"Because you know the truth, sweetheart," I said lightly. "And besides, I don't think you're a mundane."

Clary ignored the last part. "The truth about you guys? People who believe in demons?"

"People who kill them," Jace corrected. "We're called Shadow-hunters. At least, that's what we call ourselves. The Downworlders have less complimentary names for us."

"Very true," I commented, and Jace nodded.

Clary's phone rang, and I motioned for her to answer it. She dug through her purse, and she grabbed it, putting it to her ear.

"Mom?"

* * *

**Sorry to leave it kind of abrupt like that, but it picks up in the next chapter.**

**If you like it, love it, want some more of it, or anything in between, review!**

**Farewell!**

**- EasyIsTheDescent**


	5. Chapter 5

**Hello!**

**Thanks again to every review, favorite, and follow!**

**So, here is chapter 5, I hope you enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: Cassandra Clare is the proud owner of TMI and its characters.**

**And all I have to say is, if she kills Jace in COFH, I will hunt her down.**

**Who's driving the getaway van, anyone?**

* * *

"Why are you so hesitant to give her information?" Jace whispered in my ear, and I shook my head.

"She obviously doesn't want to know. She likes being mundane."

"Someone changed their views."

"I still think we need to help her. I just don't want to turn her into a Shadowhunter, it's a boring idea."

Jace shook his head at me, and we focused our attention on Clary.

Her face looked a ghastly pale. "Mom!" She yelled. "Mom, are you there?"

She seemed to be redialing a number, but no one answered. She dropped the phone, cracking it, and she threw it back to the ground in frustration. "Dammit!"

"Clary, stop," I soothed, grabbing her wrist and pulling her towards me, "Clary, what's going on?"

"Give me your phone," She demanded, grabbing the Sensor out of Jace's pocket, "I have to-"

"That's not a phone, Clary, it won't work," I murmured.

"But I need to call the police!" She argued, and Jace shook his head.

"Tell us what happened first." Clary wriggled under my grasp, but I had my arms wrapped around her, and she wasn't going anywhere.

"Clary, we can help you." I whispered in her ear, and she stopped moving, only to reach out and hit Jace across the cheek, causing him to stumble backwards in shock.

I had lost my grip on her, and she ran away, tripping over her own feet. I moved to follow her, but Jace shook his head, putting his hands on my shoulders and moving me into the shadows.

I put my hand under Jace's chin, ignoring the electricity that flowed through my fingers, and I studied the red mark on his cheek carefully.

"Damn, I take it all back. I think she may be a Shadowhunter, after all."

"Very funny, Nikki." Jace snapped, and I laughed at him.

"We should probably go find her," He ignored my giggles, taking my arm lightly and pulling me after her.

"She has one mean slap," Jace muttered, and I rolled my eyes.

"Jace, the girl is a good five feet, if that. I don't think she caused you that much pain."

"You'd be surprised."

"You just want me to feel bad and kiss it better," I teased, and Jace grinned, his eyes flashing mischievously.

"Don't get any ideas, Wayland," I warned, "I'm not kissing you."

"I didn't think you would," Jace admitted as we walked across the street, and he looked at me curiously. "Do you know where you're going?"

"I found her address when we were researching her," I explained, "So for once, I may know where I'm going."

"And what makes you think Clary wants our help?"

I rolled my eyes at him. "We are the only people she can trust."

Jace sighed. "But she doesn't trust us, Nikki."

"She will, _mon cher,_" I grinned, "She just needs time."

We continued walking, and Jace stopped suddenly when he realized something. He cursed under his breath. "That girl still has my damned Sensor."

I snorted, pulling out my own and handing it to him wordlessly. He snatched it out of my grasp rudely, and when it vibrated, he turned to me.

"We're near Clary's house, Jace." His eyes widened, and we didn't spare another second, sprinting down the sidewalk, only just avoiding the mundanes with skill acquired over years of training.

When we reached the brick house, I could immediately sense something was wrong, as could Jace, because we barreled up the steps and through the door, racing upstairs in the proper direction.

The door hung open, and the air reeked of demon.

I had a seraph blade out in an instant, and I entered hesitantly, Jace at my heels.

What I found inside was not what I had expected.

There were no demons, not that I could tell. There was Clary, unconscious on the floor, her red hair draped over her shoulders in a mess of curls, and I knelt by her side, pressing my fingers to her neck to find a pulse.

"She's alive," I breathed, and Jace nodded, continuing through the apartment to check for demons as I studied the injury at the back of Clary's neck.

"Clear," Jace called, "It was a Ravener. I bet there's poison in that wound."

I nodded in confirmation, and Jace knelt by my side, scooping Clary up into his arms. "We have to go now."

I led the way out of the apartment, sirens heard in the distance, and I just managed to duck and pull Jace to the ground behind some rosebushes before people started to appear.

I cursed, positioning myself away from the thorny plants. "These mother-"

"Father," Jace interrupted, and I rolled my eyes, focusing my attention on the wound on Clary's neck. It looked pretty bad.

"Here," I dug through the pocket inside my jacket, bringing out a little round tin the size of a golf ball that contained a waxy, golden substance. "Some of that demon poison salve Hodge makes. Try it."

Jace nodded, continuing to rip fabric and applied some of the salve to it.

Clary's eyes fluttered, and she groaned, catching our attention.

"Hold still," I instructed quietly, and she didn't listen, turning her head to the side.

"Aren't you great at following directions," I whispered sarcastically, easing her back down, keeping the back of her neck exposed as Jace continued to fumble with our makeshift bandage.

Jace tied the strip of cloth around her neck, and Clary looked around. "That demon, it-"

"Is dead." I confirmed. "Surprisingly enough, you killed it."

"The police are here," She acknowledged. "We should-"

"Do nothing," I finished, "I bet you good money those aren't real cops, darling. Demons like to cover their tracks."

"My mom," Clary croaked, and Jace's gaze flickered to mine in concern. We didn't know about her mother.

"Clary, you've been poisoned. We need to take you to the Institute, or you are going to die, and you are going to die soon." I warned, and Clary nodded weakly as Jace as I stood, Jace reaching out a hand to pull her up.

"Can you walk?" He asked, and Clary was studying the "police" with a horrified look.

"I think so."

I raised an eyebrow at her weak figure. "And I don't."

Clary ignored me, and Jace did too. "We have to get out of here. Can we go through the alley?"

Clary shook her head weakly. "It's bricked up. There's no way-" She started coughing, her sentence unfinished, and when she pulled her hand away from her mouth she whimpered.

Jace took her arm wordlessly, and I realized the object in his hand too late.

"Jace!" I warned, but he had already pressed the tip of his stele into her arm, and he carved a glamour into her arm.

"What's that supposed to do?" Clary asked, but I didn't look at her, only watched the rune in horror.

She didn't scream in pain. Didn't drop dead.

Perhaps she was a Shadowhunter, after all.

"It'll hide you," Jace answered, his eyes studying my face with a grim expression, "Temporarily."

Clary didn't respond, only stumbled slightly. "Jace," She said, and her legs gave, causing her to fall, Jace catching her quickly.

I felt my chest tighten painfully.

Jace swung her up in his arms, and he muttered something, but I didn't listen to him, didn't meet his eyes.

Of course he caught her. That didn't mean he liked her.

And even if it did, it didn't matter. I shouldn't care.

But I did.

Clary's eyes closed, and I cursed under my breath, looking around. "Jace, we have to get back to the Institute. How?"

Jace looked at the sidewalk determined. "You have a glamour, right?"

I nodded, wary of what he was about to do.

"We are going to run. Fast." Jace held out his arm towards me, not loosening his grasp on Clary's unconscious figure, and I looped my arm through his tightly.

We took off, sprinting, and Jace shielded me from the demon's gaze as we raced across the street, and we continued to run towards the Institute.

* * *

"I can't believe you two brought home the damned mundie-"

"Alec, just shut up," I groaned, exasperated.

"I shall not," He snapped, but I could hear a hint of amusement in his voice.

When I had first arrived at the Institute, besides Jace, Alec was the one I had gotten along with best. He didn't talk too much, didn't ask too many questions, and it was something I was grateful for. We were similar in many ways, mostly quiet and shy with people other than our family, and cold exteriors that we used to make people stay away from us.

When Jace and I had arrived at the Institute, Clary in Jace's arms and blood and ichor everywhere, Hodge was furious, to say the least. I guess I couldn't blame him.

But the fearful look on Jace's face was priceless.

Clary had been out for three days, and I was worried, as was Jace, though he didn't show it. And that worry for Clary had been slowly killing me each day.

I wasn't even sure why it bothered me. I didn't love Jace that way.

I couldn't.

Jace and I had never been anywhere near a romantic relationship, as odd as it was, considering we were two teenagers living under the same roof, only a hallway away from one another.

We had always been siblings, but I had always felt something slightly more. I had always thought Jace was handsome, always loved his tough exterior, and I had always thought he was an amazing person.

But I didn't love him.

Because he didn't love me that way.

It wasn't exactly an instant thing, or something that affected our relationship, but I felt that he knew it, and that killed me.

Because he didn't love me that way.

Alec stopped at the library door, and I left him to tell Hodge of Clary's new status, walking towards the music room, the sound of the piano announcing that Jace was there.

I stopped in the doorway, watching him for a second. He didn't stop playing, or even acknowledge my presence, but he knew I was there.

"What's up, Nicks?"

I walked into the room, stopping a foot away from him. "Clary is awake. I thought you should know."

He patted a spot on the piano bench next to him, and I moved to sit next to him, ignoring the tingling feeling I felt having my side pressed against his.

"Well thank you for the information. Did you kiss her awake?"

I shuddered. "No thank you."

"Have you kissed a girl before?" Jace asked, curious, and I bit my lip hesitantly.

"No."

Jace's eyes widened, and he turned to stare at me in disbelief as I looked away, not meeting his eyes. "By the Angel, you have!"

"It was at this warlock's party, and there were Downworlders-"

"By the Angel, my sister likes women."

I cringed internally at the word "sister."

"No, I don't. It was a onetime thing, and I learned I don't like women that way. They're just too… soft."

Jace nodded in appreciation. "You like us rough men, huh?"

I rolled my eyes at him, and he wiggled his eyebrows suggestively. "I suppose so, but if you repeat this knowledge, I will kill you in your sleep."

"I have no doubt."

At that moment, Clary walked into the room, and the two of us looked up in surprise. "Clary?" I asked, and she nodded.

"That's me."

"How are you feeling?" Jace asked, though I didn't hear much interest in his voice, only boredom.

"Better, I guess." Clary mumbled, and Jace eyed her up and down with an amused expression.

"Are those Isabelle's clothes? They look ridiculous on you."

I recognized my own dark-wash jeans, old and too small, and my own black tank top, both of which I had left for her to wear. They indeed looked ridiculous on Clary's nonexistent figure.

Clary's eyes flickered to mine. "They're Nikki's, actually," Clary smiled at me, which I returned, "Thanks, by the way."

"Any time," I promised, and Jace snorted.

"I'm pretty sure she only wants to look that gangly _once,_ Nicks."

I smacked his arm playfully, and he nudged me in the side with his elbow.

Clary watched us with an amused expression. "You two are a cute couple, you know. Kind of nauseating."

I choked, coughing unstoppably, and I stumbled away from the piano bench whilst shaking my head. "No, we aren't… Jace and I don't-"

"We aren't dating, is what Shadowhunter Barbie is trying to say," Jace said with an amused smirk, but there was something in his eyes that resembled…

Longing?

_ Of course not,_ I scolded myself mentally. _You delusional Neanderthal._

"Oh..." Clary said, her eyebrows knitted in confusion, "I thought-"

"You thought wrong." Jace corrected firmly, and I tried to ignore the hurt.

It wasn't working very well.

"You don't have to act so disgusted by the thought of dating me," I hissed, and Jace looked at me in surprise, before he hid it quickly.

"Would you _like_ to date me, Bellefleur?" He asked, using the cold mask on his face that I hated. He barely ever used it around me, thankfully.

"Anyways," Clary cleared her throat, interrupting us, "What's next?"

"You should see Hodge," Jace replied, standing up, "I'll take you."

Jace spared one last look over his shoulder at me, before he ushered Clary out of the room, leaving me to breathe deeply, before I made my way to Isabelle's room, something I found I did whenever I felt sad.

My _parabatai_ was shuffling through her closet, blowing a strand of her hair out of her eyes determinedly. She looked up when I walked in, and her brows furrowed in concern.

"What happened this time?"

I snorted. "Why would something have to happen for me to come see you?"

Isabelle abandoned her post in front of the closet, coming to sit next to me on the edge of her bed. "What did Jace do?"

My eyes widened. "Why would Jace have anything to do with it?"

"You really think I don't know you only come here like this when you feel a terrible longing to be with my brother?"

I shook my head furiously. "Isabelle, I don't-"

"Nikki, stop." She sighed, "You've been like this for years, ever since the day that I met you. You love him."

"Isabelle-"

"By the Angel, Nikki, what?"

"I don't love him!" I hissed, and she shrugged.

"Believe what you like," She put up her hands in defense, "I'm just saying, I'm not your _parabata_i for nothing. And if you do love him, which you do, I'll let you know that he loves you too."

"Isabelle, stop." I warned, standing up with an angry expression, "Don't do this to me. I'm not kidding, Isabelle."

"Why are you so damned stupid?" She asked, her voice soft, despite my livid posture, "He has loved you since the day you fell into his arms when you were twelve years old. You are the one person he is nice to, the one person who can make him listen."

"I don't care. Because I don't love him." I whispered coldly, and I walked out of the room, slamming the door shut violently.

* * *

**So how'd you like it, folks?**

**I hope it gave some insight on Nikki's feelings and that of others (considering that was the goal).**

**Basically, like it, love it, want some more of it, any other feelings you have, press that pretty review button and have at your keyboard!**

**- EasyIsTheDescent**


	6. Chapter 6

**Good day, readers!**

**I know this chapter is later than usually, but I have been having a bit of trouble with writer's block, so I am breaking my habits right now.**

**With that, enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: Cassandra Clare owns TMI and its characters, not me.**

**I really wish I did though.**

**Jace is beautiful.**

* * *

I was in my room, polishing the dagger in my hand when I heard a knock, and I groaned. The last thing I wanted to deal with was people, especially if that person was Isabelle.

I instantly threw the dagger at the door, and it embedded itself in the wood, resulting in a curse from outside.

"Damn, Nikki, it's just me!" Jace called, and I walked over, pulling the knife out angrily and swinging the door open.

"What the f-"

"Do I want? Clary wants to go back to the apartment, and I don't want to be dragged there by myself," Jace's golden eyes pleaded silently, and I sighed, nodding. He grinned triumphantly.

A minute later I emerged from my room, dressed in long, loose-fitting white and black patterned pants, a black blouse, and black high heels. Clary and Jace were already waiting, and Clary's eyes widened.

"You like what you see?" I asked, amused, and Clary rolled her eyes.

"I just didn't think you guys would dress so-"

"Normal? She just likes an excuse to show off her _runes,_" Jace emphasized the last word, tossing me my cardigan in understanding.

I rolled my eyes. "It's hot outside, Mr. Leather Jacket."

"I realized. Now cover yourself up, girl, have you no shame?"

"Ha! _You_ are one to talk to _me_ about shame, Jace Wayland," I muttered, "I have more knowledge on you than one could believe."

Jace paled slightly. "Like what?"

"Yeah, like what?" Clary asked eagerly, and I rolled my eyes.

"I'll let Jace share his dirty laundry with you later," I promised, "Now let's get going, children."

We walked to the elevator quietly.

"Jace?" Clary asked, and Jace turned to her.

"Yeah?"

"How did you know I had Shadowhunter blood? Was there some way you could tell?"

I went to say something, but Jace delivered a subtle kick to my ankle, signaling that I better not say a word. "I guessed," he said replied as we got in the elevator. "It seemed like the most likely explanation."

"You guessed?" Clary asked skeptically, "You must have been pretty sure, considering you could have killed me."

I smirked as I pressed the button. Jace probably hadn't been sure at all, but had just gone with the first thought entering his brain, per usual. "I was ninety percent sure."

"I see," Clary murmured, and I looked up just in time to see her smack Jace hard across the cheek.

Jace looked up in shock and anger. "What the hell was that for?"

"Probably the other ten," I offered, before I burst into a round of uncontrollable laughter.

Jace was angrily quiet on the train ride, while I just sat there with an amused expression, and Clary looked guilty.

I noticed Clary was looking from a few girls a ways away from us to Jace and back. Jace raised an eyebrow at her. "Can I help you with something?"

"Those girls on the other side of the train are staring at you," Clary informed him, and I glanced over at the ladies in question, who were giggling at Jace, covering their mouths with their palms.

"Of course they are," Jace grinned at us, "I am stunningly attractive."

I snorted. "By the Angel, when are you going to get over that useless, big-ass ego of yours?"

"The meek may inherit the earth, my darling Nikki," Jace winked at the giggling girls, "But at the moment it belongs to the conceited. Like me."

"Well you have the conceited part right," I muttered, and Clary shot me a curious look.

"How can they see you?"

"We aren't using glamours," I explained, and she raised an eyebrow at the uninterested expression I gave the girls.

"I would have pegged you as one of them."

Jace and I snorted simultaneously in disbelief. "Me? Why?"

"You fit the description," She said, slightly envious, "Tall. Blonde. Tan skin. Blue eyes. Pretty."

"Well I assure you," Jace said quietly, "Nikki is better."

I felt slightly touched, and we went back into silence.

At Clary's house, Jace pulled out a new Sensor, and she bombarded him with questions about it while I stepped ahead of them, before Jace pulled me back.

"I don't think so," He muttered under his breath, and he stepped in front of me before continuing while I rolled my eyes at the gesture.

When we reached the door to Clary's home, Clary fumbled with the keys, snapping at an impatient Jace while I giggled in amusement, before we entered.

The inside was freezing cold, and I kept a hand on the seraph blade tucked in my belt in anticipation.

There was absolutely nothing inside, no furniture or paintings, and Clary seemed surprised as well. We walked into the kitchen, and while Jace just looked bored, Clary looked as if she were lost. "What would demons," She asked, "Want with our microwave?"

"I don't know," Jace said in an uninterested tone, "But I'm not sensing any demonic presence right now. I'd say they're long gone."

"I don't think there's anything here, Clary," I murmured, glancing around the blank walls, and Jace nodded in agreement.

"I want to see my room," Clary whispered, and I nodded.

"You're allowed." I assured her, sending Jace a look that kept him from saying anything in response.

We followed Clary to the door of her bedroom, and she placed her hand against the doorknob. Her expression changed, as if she were having trouble, and I felt the odd sense that there was something bad inside.

"Jace-"

The door blew open, and Clary was knocked to the side towards me. I barely had time to catch her before the two of us hit the wall, sliding to the ground from the impact.

I looked up at the gruesome form in front of me, and from the disgusting, rotting appearance, I recognized it instantly.

"Forsaken, Jace!" I yelled, and I climbed to my feet, pulling a limp Clary with me as I did so.

Jace called out the name of the seraph blade in his grasp, and the sharp, translucent blade shot out. He struck at the Forsaken, grabbing my arm and pulling Clary and I towards the front of Clary's icy home.

"Get her out of here!" Jace ordered as he shut the front door firmly, and I gave him a look of disobedience that he ignored.

"Come on, Clary-"

The door burst open, and I pushed Clary and myself to the wall, Jace just narrowly avoiding the Forsaken's grasp.

The Forsaken moved to attack him, and I took that as an opportunity to jam my own blade into his back. He stumbled, before he lurched towards the open staircase.

Jace dodged him, but not fast enough. It grabbed Jace as it fell, and the two tumbled down the stairs together.

"Jace!" I called, and I hurried down to the bottom, hastily stepping over the Forsaken's twitching form with my tall shoes.

Jace groaned, and I recognized that he was stuck beneath the giant.

"I got you," I assured him, pulling him free of the giant's form as he made a few pained noises.

"Is it dead?"

"Almost," Clary announced grimly, and Jace winced, holding his left arm to his side in a way that announced it was broken.

"I am so sorry," I admitted, and Jace waved it away.

"I don't blame you. Much."

"Okay," I sighed, and I turned back to the Forsaken, and then Clary. "Don't watch," I warned her, and I used the seraph blade in my grasp, bringing it down into the Forsaken's neck.

"She told you not to watch," Jace muttered in disapproval, and I looked back to Clary's pale face.

"I thought it would disappear," Clary stammered. "Back to its own dimension-you said."

"If it were a demon," I grimaced, "But that wasn't a demon."

"Can you help me?" Jace winced in pain, and I nodded, taking his stele from his grasp and carving an _iratze_ into his arm. Clary watched in amazement, and he explained it to her quietly as the healing rune started to mend his arm.

"We're going to have to tell Hodge," I reminded him, motioning towards the Forsaken corpse at our feet. Jace groaned.

"He'll freak out."

"Probably," I agreed.

"Why will he freak?" Clary asked, honestly curious, "And I get that that thing isn't a demon-that's why the Sensor didn't register it, right?"

I nodded. "Those scars, on its face, are from a stele, like Jace's."

"You asked me what happens when you carve Marks onto someone who doesn't have Shadowhunter blood. Just one Mark will only burn you, but a lot of Marks, powerful ones? Carved into the flesh of a totally ordinary human being with no trace of Shadowhunter ancestry? You get this." Jace motioned towards the Forsaken, "The runes are agonizingly painful. The Marked ones go insane-the pain drives them out of their minds. They become fierce, mindless killers. They don't sleep or eat unless you make them, and they die, usually quickly. Runes have great power and can be used to do great good-but they can be used for evil. The Forsaken are evil."

Clary looked horrified. "But why would anyone do that to themselves?"

"No one would," I interrupted, "It's done to them."

"By a warlock, maybe, some Downworlder gone bad." Jace informer her, "The Forsaken are loyal to the one who Marked them, and they're fierce killers. They can obey simple commands, too. It's like having a-a slave army." Jace was making his way to the steps. "I'm going back upstairs."

"But there's nothing there."

"There might be more of them," Jace explained, and I knew from the glint in his golden eyes that he wished there were, just for a fight. "You should wait here."

I went to object, but someone beat me to it. "I wouldn't do that if I were you," A deeply accented voice warned, "There are more of them where the first one came from."

I instantly had my seraph blade out, whirling around and pulling Clary back, but she seemed familiar with the woman before us. "Madame Dorothea?"

The woman was standing in the doorway of her apartment, and I eyed her warily, not moving the seraph blade an inch.

"But…" Jace seemed genuinely confused, making his way over to us and hovering by my side.

"More what?" Clary asked.

"More Forsaken," The woman replied, glancing around the entryway with a wrinkled nose. "You have made a mess, haven't you? I'm sure you weren't planning on cleaning up either. Typical."

"But you're a mundane," Jace stammered, and the woman looked amused.

"So observant. The Clave really broke the mold with you."

Any other time I would have laughed. "You know about the Clave?" Jace demanded, "You knew about them, and you knew there were Forsaken in this house, and you didn't notify them? Just the existence of Forsaken is a crime against the Covenant-"

"Neither Clave nor Covenant have ever done anything for me," The woman, Madame Dorothea, said angrily. "I owe them nothing."

"Jace," I hissed warningly, and I glanced at Clary. "You, mundane," I caught the attention of the woman, who didn't seem any happier talking to me than she had been talking to Jace, "What happened to Clary's mother? What do you know?"

"My advice to you," The woman addressed Clary, ignoring me, "Is to forget about your mother. She's gone."

Clary stumbled slightly, and I grabbed her arm lightly, holding her up. "You mean she's dead?" She asked, her voice strained.

"No." Dorothea said with pity, "I'm sure she's still alive. For now."

Clary seemed to be able to stand straight now. "Then I have to find her. You understand? I have to find her before-"

"I don't want to involve myself in Shadowhunter business."

"But you knew my mother. She was your neighbor-"

"This is an official Clave investigation." Jace interrupted, "I can always come back with the Silent Brothers."

"Oh, for the-" Dorothea looked towards her apartment, annoyed. "I suppose you might as well come in. I'll tell you what I can." She started toward the door, before she turned to glare at the two Shadowhunters before her. "But if you tell anyone I helped you, Shadowhunter, you'll wake up tomorrow with snakes for hair and an extra pair of arms."

"That might be nice, an extra pair of arms," Jace seemed amused. "Handy in a fight."

"He's kind of right. It'd be a pain to paint my nails, though."

"See, I don't have that problem."

"They wouldn't be handy if they're growing out of your…" Dorothea paused to smile at us humorlessly, "Neck."

"Yikes."

"Yikes is right, Jace Wayland." Dorothea walked into her apartment, not bothering to see if we were following her.

Clary seemed surprised. "Wayland?"

"It's my name." A shocked Jace replied, "I can't say I like that she knows it." I shivered at the thought.

"Still, I think we might as well try talking to her." Clary said, looking after Dorothea as she entered her apartment, "What have we got to lose?"

I snorted humorlessly, while Jace shot her a look. "Once you've spent a bit more time in our world," Jace said firmly, "You won't ask me that again."

* * *

**How was it?**

**It gets kind of boring when I am directly putting quotes from the book into these chapters, so I am trying to change them up as much as possible.**

**See you later! Review!**

**- EasyIsTheDescent**


	7. Chapter 7

**Hey, guys!**

**I know this has taken longer than usual to get updated, but I have done something very stupid and started way too many drafts of stories that have appeared in my head, and between all of them, I can barely keep up.**

**So, the updates may be a little less frequent.**

**Okay, so this chapter and future ones are a little boring, mainly involving copying and pasting parts from the stories.**

**But, whenever the first book got interesting, this one will too. Hint, hint, nudge, nudge, wink, wink. ;)**

**Enjoy!**

**- EasyIsTheDescent**

**Disclaimer: I don't own TMI or its characters, that is just Cassandra Clare.**

**I own a beat-up paperback copy of each of the books, though...**

**Does that count?**

* * *

"This place is creepy." I announced blatantly, and Jace snorted, while Clary seemed to be trying to fade away.

"Not exactly the place you'd expect a warlock to inhabit," Jace agreed, and I nodded.

"Got downgraded from a gingerbread house to a one bedroom."

Jace coughed back a laugh.

A few minutes later, Madame Dorothea was off to make tea, and Jace was trying to explain the use of seraph blades to Clary with an annoyed strain to his voice, while I just leaned against the wall, my eyes closed.

My eyes fluttered open at the sound of beads rattling, and Dorothea had appeared, motioning to the room behind her. "Tea's on the table. There's no need for you three to keep standing there like donkeys. Come into the parlor."

"I thought you'd never ask," I muttered at the same time that Clary asked "There's a parlor?"

"Of course there's a parlor. Where else would I entertain?"

"I'll just leave my hat with the footman," Jace smirked, and Madame Dorothea shot him a glare.

"If you were half as funny as you thought you were, my boy, you'd be twice as funny as you are."

She stomped away, leaving Clary and I to smirk at a puzzled Jace.

"I'm not quite sure what she meant by that." Jace admitted with a frown, and Clary and I glanced at each other.

"Really," Clary seemed to be hiding a laugh, "It made perfect sense to me."

She walked after Madame Dorothea, and Jace gave me a perplexed look as I chuckled.

"That girl," I motioned towards the retreating redhead, "Is Shadowhunter, through and through."

"Ha, ha," Jace laughed humorlessly, and I just followed him into the room, perching myself on the edge of the armchair that he sat in lazily.

I helped myself to a teacup, while Jace snatched a plate of sandwiches off of the table and bit into one hesitantly. He wrinkled his nose.

"Cucumber?" I guessed, and Jace nodded.

"Take it." He passed the sandwich to me, and I didn't hesitate to nibble at the edges as I allowed Clary to take the plate.

"Cucumber and bergamot," Clary pondered aloud, "Is there anything else you hate that I ought to know about?"

Jace, who was sipping from his tea, glanced at Madame Dorothea with his liquid topaz-colored eyes. "Liars."

"You can call me a liar all you like." Dorothea set the teapot down on the table with a cool expression, "It's true, I'm not a witch. But my mother was."

Jace choked. "That's impossible."

Clary's brows furrowed in confusion. "Why impossible?"

"Warlocks are crossbreeds," I explained, "Like mules. They're sterile."

Madame Dorothea nodded. "It's true that warlocks can't have children. My mother adopted me because she wanted to make sure there'd be someone to attend this place after she was gone. I don't have to master magic myself. I have only to watch and guard."

"Guard what?" Clary inquired, and Jace and I leaned forward slightly in a wary motion.

"What indeed?" The woman winked at Clary, reaching towards the plate for another sandwich, but between the petite girl and myself, they were gone.

Madame Dorothea laughed. It's good to see a young woman eat her fill. In my day, girls were robust, strapping creatures, not twigs like they are nowadays."

Clary and I both looked down at our seemingly thin torsos self-consciously, while Jace just rested a hand on my knee in a friendly motion.

Of course that's what it was.

Friendly.

Clary had set down her teacup, and Madame Dorothea took that as a chance to peer inside and study it careful, an action I recognized.

"What?" Clary asked, self-conscious, "Did I crack the cup or something?"

"She's reading your tea leaves," Jace replied, and the three of us leaned forward as Dorothea studied the content of the cup.

"Is it bad?" Clary asked, and Dorothea looked up at me and Jace.

"It is neither bad nor good. It is confusing." She held a hand out towards the blonde boy beside me. "Give me your cup."

"But I'm not done with my-"

Dorothea didn't seem to care, as she snatched his cup away, and Jace scowled at her. I handed him my cup with little interest, and he took it out of my hands rudely, sipping at the tea while glaring at Dorothea.

"I see violence in your future, a great deal of blood shed by you and others. Your love for one will be revealed. Also, you have an enemy."

…Did Jace's eyes flash to me?

"Only one? That's good news."

Dorothea ignored him, taking Clary's cup, and her brows furrowed in a frustrated motion. "There is nothing for me to read here. The images are jumbled, meaningless. Is there a block in your mind?"

"A what?"

"Like a spell that might conceal a memory, or might have blocked out your Sight."

Clary seemed confused, but she shook her head. "No, of course not."

"Don't be so hasty," Jace told her, looking to Dorothea, "It's true that she claims not to remember ever having had the Sight before this week. Maybe-"

"Maybe I'm just a late developer," Clary snapped at Jace, who looked flustered, "And don't leer at me, just because I said that."

"I wasn't going to."

"You were working up to a leer, I could tell."

I watched the two of them bicker, amused, and Jace seemed utterly confused that the redhead was capable of snapping at him.

Go Clary.

Kick ass.

"Maybe," Jace replied, "But that doesn't mean I'm not right. Something's blocking your memories, I'm almost sure of it."

Their conversation with Dorothea continued, and at that moment my phone rang, buzzing from inside my pocket.

Clary looked dumbfounded. "I didn't think you guys had-"

"Hello?" I answered, walking out of the "parlor" and into the front area of the apartment.

"Hey, girlfriend," Isabelle greeted, "How are you?"

"Bored," I groaned, "Jace dragged me away."

"Be careful," She warned in a sisterly tone, "I don't like all this Clary nonsense, and if you get hurt-"

"Oh, where's your sense of adventure?" I teased, leaning against the wall, "You know, blondes have more fun."

"If Jace said that, I would believe him," Isabelle mused, "But you, you are way too clear-headed."

"Don't you have somewhere to be?"

Isabelle laughed. "I love you, Nikki."

"Love you too. Bye, Iz." I hung up the phone, walking back into the parlor, and when I entered Jace was walking towards the wall, an angry expression on his face, tearing away a velvet hanging.

"You want to tell me what this is?" Jace demanded, and my eyes widened, my heels clicking harshly as I hurried across the room, running a hand lightly over the Portal door.

"It's a door, Jace," Clary seemed confused, and before I could explain it to her, Jace interrupted.

"Shut up," He snapped, "It's a Portal. Isn't it?"

"No s-"

Jace shot me a glare, and I put my hands up in defense, cutting off quickly.

"It's a five-dimensional door," Dorothea explained calmly, "Dimensions aren't all straight lines, you know."

"There are dips and folds and nooks and crannies all tucked away. It's a bit hard to explain when you've never studied dimensional theory, but, in essence, that door can take you anywhere in this dimension that you want to go. It's-"

"An escape hatch," Jace accused, "That's why your mother wanted to live here. So she could always flee at a moment's notice."

"Then why didn't she—," Clary's voice cracked. "Because of me. She wouldn't leave without me that night. So she stayed."

Jace's expression softened. "You can't blame yourself."

"I want to see where she would have gone," Clary demanded, reaching out towards the door, "I want to see where she was going to escape to-"

"Clary!" I reached for the girl, but she had already wrapped her hand around the door handle, and the door was opening.

The redhead was sucked inside, and I heard Jace yell out my name, but I was already jumping in after her.

Being a Shadowhunter, I was used to being put through a lot.

Falling was something I had grown accustomed to.

But this?

This falling sucked.

I forgot everything I knew about landing properly, and I felt branches scrape past my skin as I hurdled towards what must have been the ground, and I swore I heard a snap as I hit the earth square on my back, an agonizing pain shooting up my ribs.

And it didn't help that Jace landed on Clary, either.

"Nikki?" He turned to me, his golden locks falling into his eyes, and all I could do was gasp.

"That was intense."

He rolled his eyes, holding a hand out to me, and I shook my head, my blue eyes wide and my blonde hair sprawled about. "I don't think I can get up."

Jace's brow furrowed in concern. "Are you hurt?"

"I went hurdling out of a Portal," I growled, "I'm not in perfect condition."

Ignoring Jace's outstretched hand, I climbed to my feet excruciatingly, brushing the dirt off of me in a determined motion.

"Here," Jace reached out to brush my hair back behind my ears, and I ignored the spark of electricity as his fingers lightly grazed my cheek.

Clary was watching me with a smirk, and I sent her a glare that had her eyes widening in fear.

"So, Ms. Mundane," I turned to the short girl in question, "Where has your overactive imagination brought us today?"

Clary was glancing around the scene before us with wide eyes. "This is Luke's house," She explained, and I faintly remembered her mentioning her mother's friend.

"Okay…" I trailed off, "So what are we going to do now?"

"Leave, I guess." There was a hint of bitterness and a hint of pain in her voice, "Luke told me not to come here."

Jace said something to her, but I ignored it, already making my way towards the little bookstore and motioning towards the alley at the side. "Is there a back door?"

Clary nodded. "Sometimes he leaves it unlocked."

I grinned widely. "Perfect."

Jace and Clary followed me to the fence, and while my throbbing torso did not plan to climb, Jace had other ideas. "Up and over," He announced, and he began to climb effortlessly, myself following behind him.

Even in heels, I managed.

Isabelle would be proud.

I hopped down the side lightly, and what happened next was unexpected.

I must have landed on something, because that something yelped in pain, and I lost my balance, falling over and hitting the ground with a thud that sent waves of agony through my already-injured ribs.

Jace called out something as Clary hurried over the fence, holding out a hand that I ignored.

Jace appeared with whoever the intruder was, and the figure shoved him away. "Get the hell off me, you pretentious asshole," He repositioned the glasses that were perched on his nose, and Clary seemed to recognize him instantly.

"Simon?"

Jace and I locked eyes for a second, before I let out a string of unladylike curses that would make Maryse cringe.

"A bloody mundane," I growled, snapping at the gangly boy, Simon, who seemed a little afraid and a little adoring, "I broke my ribs after I tripped over a mother-"

"Alright," Jace interrupted, sending a look of disgust over to the flustered mundane, "I'll let you have your shot to kill him without breaking a sweat later. Let me get you a rune."

Which was how we ended up with the whole Shadowhunter world being explained, in stunning detail, to a mundane.

Needless to say, Jace and I were pretty pissed off.

After I had reset and healed a couple of my ribs, sending murderous glances over to the mundane, who had long since stopped looking at me, Simon had erupted into a fountain of questions.

I ignored them all.

The mundane wasn't necessarily on my good side today.

My mood brightened when Jace suggested we search the house, and I eagerly followed them to the locked door, which Clary was fumbling with.

"Ladies first," I smirked, brushing past Simon with my stele in hand, "Oh, and if you even think about staring at my ass, mundane, I will allow you to witness the effects of a seraph blade, from my hand."

Simon sputtered. "I-I wasn't, I wouldn't-"

"Oh, you would," Jace accused, almost bitterly, "And I suggest you don't. If there is one woman on this Earth you don't want to piss off, I believe it is the feisty blonde over here."

The door swung open, and I blew on the tip of my stele triumphantly, sliding it back down into my pocket.

"Alright, mundanes," I announced, "Let's see what skeletons are hidden in this closet, shall we?"

* * *

**How was it?**

**Let me know!**

**- EasyIsTheDescent **


	8. Chapter 8

**I'm so, so, so sorry.**

**It has been a lot longer than usual since my last update, but I've been getting all writer's-blocked, and I haven't found very much time to write as it is, and then I couldn't find my COB book to keep things true to the text...**

**Ugh, it's been stressful.**

**So my updates are going to be a lot less frequent, but I will update and I will keep it at a good pace.**

**Well, this chapter may be bad, but I was just trying to get you guys something to read, at this point.**

**- EasyIsTheDescent**

**Disclaimer: Cassandra Clare is the proud owner of TMI and all its characters.**

* * *

I hate mundanes.

That must be my problem.

I hate mundanes.

Because here we were, invading Clary's mother's friend's house, and needless to say, I wasn't having much fun.

We were in a back room, and an ugly one at that, with box after box that could only contain books, and lots of them.

Wow, how tempting it was.

"Hide the books," Jace warned, "Or Nikki may overdose."

I glared at him. "At least I _can_ read."

"Honey, I could read ever since I was six weeks old."

"Jace, if you call me 'honey' again I swear by the Angel-"

"The apartment's through there." Clary interrupted our bickering impatiently, and she started to move forward, but Jace stopped her.

"Wait."

Clary looked nervous, and I guess I couldn't blame her, but I had grown used to being thrown into dangerous situations, and with Jace around anyone would be a little jumpy.

Jace was moving through the obstacle of boxes, and whatever he was looking at made him whistle. "Nicks, Clary, you might want to come over here and see this."

I walked over to him, peering over his shoulder, and I squinted. "Jace, is that what I think it is?"

"It's so dark-"

I grabbed the witchlight from my pocket, and it flickered to life, leaving Simon and Clary blinking at the sudden change. "Ouch."

Jace and I chuckled, accustomed to the witchlight, and I actually was taking great pleasure in whatever pain I was causing the mundane.

Because landing on him hurt like a bitch.

"Look at that," Jace motioned towards what we were studying, and Clary looked confused.

"Are those-"

"Manacles," The m- _Simon_ pointed out, and he seemed a little flustered as he edged through the different boxes. "That's, ah…"

"Don't-"

"Kinky." I finished, and the mundane seemed to approve of my word choice, while Clary just narrowed her eyes at me.

Jace ran his fingers along the metal, and when he pulled them away they were covered in a brownish-red dust. "Blood. And look," He pointed at the uneven plaster above them, "Someone tried to yank these things out of the wall. Tried pretty hard, from the looks of it."

This did little to calm Clary's nerves. "Do you think Luke is all right?"

"I think we'd better find out."

We continued into the apartment, and I pulled out a dagger while Jace just rolled his golden eyes at me.

"Always anticipating a fight, Bellefleur."

"And you aren't?"

"I'm always _wishing_ for a fight, there is a difference. One involves adrenaline, and the other involves sheer paranoia."

"I think he's still around," Simon called, breaking us out of our thoughts, "The percolator's on and there's coffee here. Still hot."

Clary disappeared, off to find something different to wear than my clothes which were too big for her, and Jace and I immediately went to look in the large bag that supposedly contained weapons, according to the mundane.

There were weapons, and they weren't your regular mundane weapons, either. They were blades, whips- Shadowhunter and Downworld weapons.

"Great," I grumbled, "The Clave will be so pleased."

"The what?"

"Mundane," I turned to the boy with the glasses, whose eyes widened when he realized that I wasn't exactly pleased, "Let's get one thing straight. I don't like you. Nothing personal. It's just natural. I am not a nice person, nor am I a friendly or social person. So, you don't speak to me, I don't speak to you, and that includes asking me questions of things you shouldn't know about to begin with."

Simon blinked, and Jace just chuckled from behind me, pulling out a small, shiny weapon that I recognized as a chakram.

Jace explained this to Clary when she entered the room, and I decided to search the rest of the apartment, coming up empty of anything but signs that a man had lived here.

Hence the dirt and disorganized clothing.

"Guys!" Simon suddenly hissed, "Someone's coming."

I strode towards him, peeking out the door as Simon said something to Clary that involved "But he's not by himself-there are two men with him."

I looked at the two men outside and their robes. "No. Not men. Warlocks."

"Warlocks?"

"Nikki," Jace grabbed me by the arm, pulling me away from my current stance by the door and turning to Clary, "Is there some other way out of here? A back door?"

Clary shook her head no, and I glanced around before I noticed the screen by the wall, and I motioned to it. "We need to hide."

Jace nodded, and I shoved the mundane behind the screen none too gently, Clary following him, and Jace and I had only just hidden ourselves before the door opened.

I etched a rune into the screen, and suddenly we could see through it, while Jace silently explained the way it worked to Clary and Simon.

There was a man I recognized as Luke from Clary's pictures, with brown hair and glasses, plus the two men that wore warlock robes.

Jace went stiff beside me.

I glanced up at him in alarm, but he didn't look down at me, as he was watching the two men with an unreadable expression.

Jace wasn't usually like this.

I linked my arm through his, and he held onto it tightly, as if he were afraid I were going to disappear.

"There's nothing friendly about you, Pangborn." The man, Luke, was saying, and from Clary's expression she was noticing the wounds that covered his face and neck, and probably more that was covered by his clothing.

Luke and the two warlocks (though something was telling me that wasn't what they were) began to speak about something, but my attention was adverted as I studied Jace carefully.

"I suppose Valentine sent you?" The name sent an icy shudder through me, and though Simon and Clary seemed confused by the mention of the name, I knew who he was.

Valentine Morgenstern was infamous to Shadowhunters.

He had led the Uprising, resulting in the deaths of so many Downworlders and Shadowhunters, and he had died, burned in his own home.

My family, the Bellefleurs, had always hated Valentine, as my aunt was friends with his wife and never trusted him.

Yeah, Madeleine Bellefleur had good instincts.

"There's nothing to change my mind about." Luke was responding to something one of the warlocks, Pangborn, had said. "I already told you I don't know anything. Nice cloaks, by the way."

"Thanks. Skinned them off a couple of dead warlocks."

Nope, they were definitely not warlocks, after all.

I listened to the rest of their conversation, and certain words stood out from the rest, catching my attention. _Uprising, terrible day, the past…_

It sounded as if they were Circle members.

But that couldn't be.

I was dying to talk to Jace, and he seemed to notice it, because he clamped a hand over my mouth, while I glared at him fiercely.

Whatever they were discussing involved the Mortal Cup, and though it really wasn't anything personal to me, I knew it was to my kind. The Mortal Instruments were three things, the cup, the sword, and the mirror, that were holy objects of the Nephilim, and had originally been in the hands of the Clave.

_And yet none of this was taking my thoughts away from Jace's hand on my arm, dammit!_

"I never felt any way about her, particularly," Luke was saying to the two men, "Two Shadowhunters, exiled from their own kind, you can see why we might have banded together. But I'm not going to try to interfere with Valentine's plans for her, if that's what he's worried about."

"I wouldn't say he was worried," Pangborn replied calmly, as if he were perfectly at ease with the conversation at hand, "More curious. We all wondered if you were still alive. Still recognizably human."

"And?"

"You seem well enough," Pangborn replied, before another thought must have come to his mind. "There was a child, wasn't there? A girl."

I knew instantly who he was talking about, and Clary did too, because she looked up at me in fear, and I couldn't help but put a hand on her shoulder.

_Stupid mundanes,_ I growled to myself, _I'm starting to get attached. Like one would get attached to a _pet_._

Luke looked surprised by the comment. "What?"

"Don't play dumb," said Blackwell in his snarl of a voice. "We know the bitch had a daughter. They found photos of her in the apartment, a bedroom-"

Luke cut him off with some lie, and I turned to Jace frantically, but he didn't seem to have any better of an idea of what to do than I did. He was watching the scene before us, and all I knew was that if it didn't end soon, I was going to hop out from behind the screen and murder all three of them out of sheer boredom.

And considering he was still holding me back, I assumed Jace had noticed this growing feeling of mine.

"Jace," I whispered in his ear, so that even he could barely hear me, "Those guys are Shadowhunters, aren't they?"

He nodded grimly.

"And they were in the Circle."

"Most likely."

I bit my lip. "…And you know them?"

"I don't think you could call it that," He murmured, and I raised an eyebrow, but I recognized the faraway look in his golden eyes.

That look appeared whenever his father was mentioned.

And from the way his fist was clenched so tight, I was capable of putting the pieces together. "Jace, did-"

"Yes." He replied in a growl, and Clary and Simon looked confused, but Jace just stared through the glass-like square that the rune had created, his arm still latched tightly around me.

"Look, I've got no idea where the girl is," Luke told the men, "But for what it's worth, I'd guess she's dead. She'd have turned up by now otherwise. Anyway, she's not much of a danger. She's fifteen years old, she's never heard of Valentine, and she doesn't believe in demons."

_Yeah, that sounds like Clary._

Poor little redhead.

Luke was obviously trying to look nonchalant, but I knew better. His knuckles were white, and his jaw was set in a way that suggested he cared a lot more about Clary that he showed.

Pangborn caught it. "You sound angry, Lucian."

"We should just kill them." I stated blatantly, and Jace snorted lightly, to where I almost didn't hear him at all.

"And here I thought you were the sensible one in the Institute."

"This is me being sensible. You and I could take them."

Jace's eyes turned cold. "You are not going anywhere near them, do you understand me?"

His grip on my arm was almost painful, and his words were bitter as he whispered in my ear. "Fine."

"We could stop you," The other man, Blackwell, was saying. "Make you stay."

Luke's cool, calm expression faded. "You could try."

The challenge was clearly audible in his voice, and I tensed, knowing that if a fight started, I sure as hell wasn't walking away.

I needed _something_ to know this day wasn't a total waste.

A minute later the two men left, lifting their stolen warlock hoods as they did so, and they were out the door, Luke following after them.

It was a minute before any of us behind the screen moved. Clary's skin was a sickly pale, and her green eyes looked lost.

"Clary," The mundane's voice was kind towards his friend, "Are you okay?"

"If this is her when she's okay," My tone was bored, "I'd hate to see her whenever she isn't."

"Of course-"

"I'm not in the mood for anymore arguing today." I announced, "Those evil bastards just got away, I was planning on partaking in a good brawl which did not occur, I'm starved, and I want to go home."

"How do you know they're evil?" Clary's eyes were hard, "Do you know them?"

This struck a nerve on Jace's part, and I made a move to silence him too late. "Do I know them?" He repeated bitterly, "You might say that. Those are the men who murdered my father."

Clary looked as if she might move to comfort him, but when I gave a small, firm shake of my head, she thought better of it.

There wasn't one person on this earth that could comfort Jace.

Believe me I tried.

Jace took my arm, wordlessly leading the four of us out of the house (or bookstore, or whatever the hell it was) and in the direction of the nearest subway.

This thought amused the mundane, as he found it amazing that "demon slayers" took the L train, and I noticed Jace's lips turn up at the ends when my fingers flexed, a clear sign that I wanted to smack something.

"Simon," Clary shushed him, "Enough."

"_Finally_, by the Angel." I approved under my breath, and when I glanced over the mundane was giving me a displeased look.

"What did I ever do to you?"

"I hate mundanes." I explained flatly, "You are stupid, ignorant, and while I risk my life, scar my body, and receive injuries every day just for your kind, you never appreciate it." Jace sent me a look I ignored. "The sacrifices I make-"

"It's not as if we knew what you guys were doing."

"And if you did?" I narrowed my eyes at him, and he visibly gulped, "Would that have made a difference?"

He looked away sheepishly, and I nodded as if I were confirming my own suspicions. "I thought so."

"Nikki," Jace sounded annoyed, "The poor mundane is simply jealous that he has no chance with a blonde-haired blue-eyed beauty like yourself. Leave it be."

And while I usually would make some smart blonde remark, all I found myself doing was turning my head to hide the blush threatening to occur.

* * *

**Yeah it was bad, but it will get better, I'm working on it.**

**So keep on reviewing, and thanks to all of you guys that have stuck by my idiotic self and keep reading!**

**Love you all, **

**EasyIsTheDescent**


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